December 2011 - Citizen Potawatomi Nation

22 HowNiKan December (Bbon Gises) 2011, vol. 32 issue 6
Potawatomi Cornerstone
by Charles Clark/Tribal Rolls Director
Porte des Mortes: Death’s Door
The Porte des Mortes is the six-mile
wide strait linking Green Bay and Lake
Michigan, between the northern tip of the
Peninsula of Door County, Wisconsin and
an archipelago known as the Potawatomi
Islands. As the largest, Washington Island
was known as Wassekiganeso, an Ojibwa
name that translates to “His Breast is Shining,”
The name referred to the reflection of
the sun off the limestone cliffs on Plum Island,
Detroit Island, Hog Island, Pilot Island,
and Rock Island.
The Potawatomi name for Death’s Door
is translated as Mboshawadem. It is unknown
what the other tribes called the
strait. However, resources indicate they had
a similar meaning for the area. French explorers
picked up on the name and called it
the same thing because of the treacherous
currents and unpredictable wave action.
People navigating through the area often
found the passage unnerving; frequent and
oppressive fog made the passage hazardous,
extremely lonely, and forbidding.
The passage claimed many lives, First Nations
and Europeans alike, as the name suggests.
One of the earliest European explorers to
navigate through these dangerous waters
was Jean Nicolet in 1635, when he visited
the area with fellow traders and missionaries.
Nicolet first arrived in Quebec in 1618,
as a clerk and to train as an interpreter for
the Compagnie des Marchands, a trading
monopoly owned by members of the
French aristocracy. Oddly enough, he died
in 1642, drowning in the St. Lawrence
River in Sillery, near Quebec City, when his
boat overturned in a storm.
Among the earliest known inhabitants of
the Islands were the Potawatomis. They
lived on the islands because they provided
ideal protection against their enemies. One
theory for the origin of the name comes
from a battle between the Potawatomis and
the Winnebagos in the 1650s.
When the Winnebagos migrated to the
region from the southwest, the Potawatomis
initially offered to share the land with them.
However, the Winnebagos, who were more
numerous, pushed the Potawatomis off the
peninsula and onto the Islands.
The Winnebagos were set to cross the
strait and take the islands as well. But, before
they could, the Potawatomis devised
their own plan by sending three scouts to
locate the Winnebagos’ encampment and
light a signal fire at a safe landing zone, so
the Potawatomis could attack from the Winnebagos’
rear.
Unfortunately, the scouts were caught
and tortured. Two of them died with their
secrets, but the third revealed the plan. The
Winnebagos devised a two-pronged attack;
1) they would place a signal fire at a high
bluff giving no place for the Potawatomis
to land and 2) they would send out war canoes
in a roundabout fashion, circling the
Potawatomi war party and attacking it from
behind. That would leave no escape exit for
the Potawatomis. From there, the Winnebagos
would be free to move in on the islands
and attack the Potawatomi villages that
would no doubt have been left defenseless.
When the Potawatomi war party left the
islands, the weather was relatively calm.
But, as they neared the peninsula, the
weather had taken a turn for the worse with
a strong north wind and rough waters. Unable
to turn back, they continued, thinking
that the vanguard had set the signal fire in
a safe landing place.
When the Potawatomis arrived, the Winnebagos
attacked from the safety of the
high ledges, raining down arrows and
spears. Unable to defend themselves, the
Potawatomis tired to retreat but, because of
the turbulent waters, many of the canoes
began crashing into the rocks and capsizing,
setting the Potawatomis in them adrift.
Many drowned.
Some Potawatomis made it to a small
ledge above the waves, but a large number
of Winnebagos jumped onto the ledge and
continued to fight with tomahawks until a
large wave took them all.
The Winnebagos, who had set out in canoes
earlier, never made it to the battle or
attacked the islands. They were never seen
again, and are presumed to have drowned.
Later that day, remnants of the Winnebago
war party’s canoes washed up on
the shore. The Winnebagos took this as an
omen, and never crossed the strait over to
the islands. For them, it was the doorway to
death. And it is there that the legend of the
Door of Death supposedly began.
History does not tell us when the early
French explorers translated the Ojibwa
word for “Door of Death” into Porte des
Morte. But in the fall of 1872 alone, more
than 100 large vessels were stranded or
damaged passing through the “Door.” In
1880, about 30 boats were driven ashore at
Plum Island.
Today, with modern boats, weather forecasting,
accurate charts, and the United
States Coast Guard stationed on Washington
Island, Death’s Door does not prove to
be such a threat to anyone anymore.
Attention
CPN Veterans
All Citizen Potawatomi Nation veterans
are encouraged to contact Stacy
Coon at the CPN Cultural Heritage
Center. Stacy’s contact information is
Stacy.Coon@Potawatomi.org, 405-275-
3121, or 800-880-9880.
We would like to ensure that Stacy
and, therefore, Veterans Organization
members know when CPN veterans
have been hospitalized or have experienced
a death in the family. This allows
us to respond more quickly and appropriately
to that veteran’s needs.
Additionally, please ensure that
Stacy and the Veterans Organization
have current contact information for
you.
Finally, you can remain current on
all activities and news of the CPN Veterans
Organization’s activities at our
website: www.CPNVeterans.org.
View
CPN Legislative
meetings
on
www.Potawatomi.org